Stay with me
by StarCharm
Summary: Oneshot. After Terra, Aqua and Ven are all Keyblade Masters Terra decides to be the new guardian of the Land of Departure and encourages Aqua and Ven to do whatever they want. Aqua doesn't know what to do, but when she finds out Ven is leaving to explore the worlds and won't come back in a long time she realizes that maybe her feelings for him are stronger than she thought. Venqua.


"Are you sure you want to do this?"

Standing by the frame of the door leading to Eraqus' old study Aqua watched as Terra neatly arranged papers and books that were scattered on the desk to their respective places.

"Yeah, my mind's made up."

Terra took out the chair from the desk and looked at it longingly for a couple of seconds before he finally took a seat.

"There's no point if the three of us stay here." Terra continued, leaning back against the chair. "What about you? Have you thought of what you want to do now?"

Aqua sighed and rubbed her arm uncertain.

"For the longest time I was only focused on becoming a Master, I never really thought what I'd do after." She smiled sadly. "I guess I was hoping the Master would suggest me something."

"I see." Terra frowned in sympathy. He too hadn't thought what he'd do with his life after reaching the title of Master, so hadn't he taken the role of guardian for the Land of Departure he would be unsure of what to do just like Aqua was.

"I wonder if Ven is as lost as I am." Aqua mused out loud.

"Well, actually…" Terra said to gain her attention. "He already decided."

Aqua raised her eyebrows in surprise.

So Ven had already thought of what to do with his life in such a short amount of time? Or maybe he had been thinking about it for a while? Aqua wasn't sure which was the case, but she had to recognize that Ven really had matured throughout the years, it never stopped surprising her.

"Really? What is he going to do?"

Terra frowned sadly. So Ven hadn't told Aqua yet? It was strange that Ven would take the time to tell him but not even mention a thing to Aqua. However, when Terra gave it a little thought he could understand why he didn't.

"He's leaving to explore the worlds on his own. Said he wouldn't come back in a long time."

Aqua felt her heart skip a beat in both panic and distress.

"When is he leaving?" Aqua asked in a whisper, almost fearful of the answer.

"Tomorrow morning." Terra said solemnly.

The two stood silent as Aqua slowly took in the gravity of the situation.

Ven was going to leave? There was not telling when she would see him again, and despite his departure being so soon he hadn't said a thing to her. Was he planning to just say goodbye to her tomorrow and leave? But why? Why did he tell Terra but not her? Didn't Ven care he wouldn't see her again in a long time?

Her hands clenched into fists and softly shook in disbelief. The idea that she wouldn't be able to see Ven everyday suddenly overwhelmed her. It was a strange feeling, like a void had suddenly appeared in the middle of her chest and weighted her down.

Was it fear that she was feeling?

"Oh…" Aqua finally spoke up, her lips suddenly feeling very dry.

Terra looked concerned in her direction, noticing that the sudden news had definitely upset her.

"You okay Aqua?"

"Y-Yeah I'm fine." Aqua cleared her throat awkwardly, doing her best to keep her composure in front of Terra. "I'm gonna go take a walk and think things through before going to sleep."

Not letting Terra say anything else Aqua walked away towards the exit of the castle.

Why was she feeling like this? Any other day she would have been happy her friends decided what to do with their lives and would actually cheer them on. But right then, thinking over and over how Ven wouldn't be there anymore caused her heart to ache. She hated feeling like that.

Despite knowing those were Ven's wishes Aqua didn't want it to end like that. She needed to talk to him at least once to hear him out, maybe that way she could understand his perspective and feel a little more at ease.

No, that wasn't why she wanted to talk to him. She wanted to convince him otherwise, to make him stay with her and Terra. But wasn't that selfish of her? What kind of friend was she if she didn't support Ven's wishes? Why did she want him to stay so badly that she'd be willing to go so far?

Having long exited the castle Aqua finally found herself walking up the mountain path to reach the summit, and right there at the edge of their stargazing spot was Ven sitting by himself.

Aqua felt her heart flutter and butterflies tickle the pit of her stomach the moment she saw him.

Oh.

So that's what it was.

Not so long ago strange and unusual thoughts began appearing in Aqua's mind. Any other day she could have described her friend as small and cute, but as time passed and Ven grew up words she never would have thought of to describe him circled her mind. He looked so much mature, confident, strong and handsome.

Aqua tried to ignore the seemingly harmless crush she suddenly developed and figured it would be nothing but a fleeting emotion, but the moment the situation turned dire and she was in danger of not seeing Ven again her heart decided to speak truthfully.

Aqua bit her lower lip and brought her hand to her chest. Should she really go and ask him to not leave? Was that the right thing to do? Her mind yelled at her to turn around and let Ven live his life as he pleased, but her heart begged her to go and talk to him.

She really didn't want him to leave, but she didn't want to stop him from following his dreams either.

Taking a deep breath to calm her nerves Aqua slowly walked towards him and sat down by his side on the grass.

"Hey." Aqua greeted softly.

Ven took one look at her face and smiled sadly in realization.

"So Terra told you, huh?"

"Of course he did." Aqua sighed, turning to look at him in disappointment. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Ven had been hoping he wouldn't need to have this conversation with Aqua, but deep inside he knew it was inevitable. He agreed it was unfair that he didn't say anything to her, but there was no way he could watch the expression on her face as he told her he was leaving for good. He didn't have the courage.

The point of leaving was so that after years of secretly harboring romantic feelings for Aqua he could finally get over them and move on. Despite growing and maturing with time Ven still couldn't muster the courage to confess his feelings, still too afraid of being rejected on the spot and potentially ruining his friendship with Aqua. There was no point in keeping that bottled up for the rest of his life.

"I wasn't brave enough, I'm sorry."

Not entirely sure what Ven meant Aqua frowned confused, hoping that he would elaborate.

Ven glanced briefly to see the expression on her face and regretted it instantly. She was completely at a loss, genuinely trying to understand what was happening, and the way her eyes looked at him expectantly quietly begging him to explain himself caused his chest to tighten.

"What do you mean?" Aqua asked concerned. Was it something she did or said that made Ven think she'd be mad at him?

He really wanted to stop feeling the way he did for her, but how could he? His heart raced every time he looked at those pristine eyes. If he didn't turn away from her he might as well stay there the rest of his life. The only way he could break free of his heart's stubbornness was to leave and not look back.

"It's you I'm going to miss the most, I'm scared I might change my mind if I stay any longer with you." Ven chuckled in defeat, covering his eyes with one of his hands.

Aqua felt a shiver run down her spine.

"So… you don't want to leave?" She asked in a hopeful whisper.

"I have to."

"Why?"

At this point Aqua wasn't sure anymore what is it that Ven really wanted to do. All she knew was that his resolve to leave wasn't strong enough to not be convinced to stay, but for some mysterious reason he was forcing himself to keep going with his plans.

Ven ruffled his hair frustrated, confused as to why Aqua was suddenly questioning him so earnestly. It she kept going he might actually back out at the last minute.

"There's something… something I've been meaning to take care of." Ven mumbled bashful, trying to be as vague as possible.

Aqua furrowed her eyebrows in thought. She had known Ven for years, they were best friends, yet there was something so important he had to do that needed him to leave the Land of Departure possibly for years and she had never heard about it before? What could it possibly be? Was it really something he couldn't do if he stayed?

"I guess you're not going to me tell me what that is, huh?"

Ven looked away as he shook his head.

Aqua sighed. As things were going she definitely wouldn't be able to convince Ven to stay. Would she really be able to live with herself just fine if she left it at that?

If he stayed any longer and let Aqua question him further Ven wouldn't have the strength to leave. So mustering what little willpower he had left he stood up and dusted himself off, ready to call it a day.

"Sorry Aqua. I have to wake up early tomorrow, so I better get going." Ven apologized hastily while avoiding looking at her face.

Panicking when she saw Ven starting to make his way back Aqua let her body move on instinct and reached out for his hand so he couldn't go any further. Despite the fact that Ven had already made up his mind Aqua wanted to keep trying until the last second, and when she noticed her hold on Ven was a little too tight and he was looking back at her in surprise she realized she probably wouldn't get another chance to stop him.

"P-Please wait." She said shakily, still not sure what she was going to say in the first place.

Ven's cheeks started to slowly get warm, and he gulped nervously when he noticed his body wasn't responding to his commands.

Could it be that Aqua didn't want him to leave? Her hand that was holding him in place was slightly trembling, and the expression of distress on her face made it seem as if she was begging him to hear her out.

Why was she doing this? Did she really have no idea that she had his heart in the palm of her hand? It drove him crazy. Now more than ever did Ven want to forget about those overwhelming feelings, but Aqua wasn't making it easy on him.

"Aqua…" Ven began softly, forcing himself to look away. "Please don't do this."

"Do you really have to go?" Aqua finally dared to ask. "Is there nothing I can do to make you stay?"

There was nothing she could do. If he stayed there and continued seeing Aqua everyday it'd be impossible to cast those feelings away.

"T-There's nothing you can do." Ven stuttered, growing more anxious as the seconds passed. Keeping his composure in front of Aqua and trying to ignore his racing heart was slowly becoming more and more difficult. "So please… please let me go."

"I won't." Aqua stated both determined and desperate. "If you're leaving… if I'm not seeing you ever again then at least I want to know why."

"No you don't Aqua! You don't want to know!" Ven argued angrily, no longer being able to keep his emotions at check. If she found out the truth it wouldn't be the same between them, Ven was sure of that. Why couldn't he just leave on a good note and look back fondly on the memories of his best friends?

"Yes I do!" Aqua insisted. She stood up from the grass still not letting go of Ven's hand, taking a step forward to shorten the distance between them.

He couldn't say it. After all this time he still couldn't say it.

No matter how much Aqua asked him to say it he didn't have the courage to do it.

Ven tried to free his hand but Aqua immediately strengthened the grip on him, keeping him in place.

He was tired of feeling lonely and empty every time he thought of the future he would never have with Aqua. So right when he decided it was time to put an end to that chapter of his life Aqua had to step in and corner him so forcefully. It was already hard enough on its own, and Aqua wasn't making things easier for him.

"Why do you want to know so badly?" Ven asked tiredly, no longer trying to put up a fight as his hostage hand fell limp.

Ven looked at Aqua in defeat, pleading with his eyes to not push it any further and just let him go.

For a moment Aqua hesitated. Part of her was frustrated at whatever was so important that forced Ven to leave so suddenly, and she wouldn't be able to sleep at night if she didn't know what it was. But at looking at his eyes, so exhausted and sad and begging her to let him go, she couldn't help being overwhelmed with guilt.

"Why don't you want me to leave?"

Even Ven realized it. She really didn't want him to leave. What kind of friend was she? She literally took hold of him to not let him go when Ven had said he wanted to go explore other worlds. She wouldn't be surprised if Ven thought she was being really selfish.

Aqua sighed in resignation. If Ven was really leaving and she wouldn't see him in a very long time, then it didn't matter anymore what she said. She might as well speak truthfully during their last moments together.

"Because…" Aqua finally let go of Ven's hand while mustering a smile of defeat. "I fell in love with you."

Ven widened his eyes and felt a surge of warmth run all over his body at once. He staggered in place, trying to fully process what just happened but the erratic beating of his heart reaching his ears and the incessant fluttering inside his chest were too distracting.

Aqua frowned concerned when the entirety of Ven's face turned red and he was visibly struggling to say something.

"I wanted you to at least know that before you left." Aqua added timidly, not entirely sure how to interpret Ven's silence.

"A-Are… are y-you serious?" Ven managed to stutter.

When Aqua nodded Ven groaned annoyed and brought his hands to his head in disbelief.

"I'm such an idiot!" He whined to the skies, causing Aqua to flinch startled. "This whole time I loved you too in secret but I was so _sure_ I didn't stand a chance and it could never happen so I thought that maybe if I left the Land of Departure to explore other worlds I could finally get over you!" Ven confessed a little too quickly. "Maybe if I wasn't such a coward and confessed sooner we could have actually-"

Interrupting Ven's panicked outburst Aqua swiftly walked up to him and silenced his words with a kiss. She felt his body tense up against hers, freezing in place uncertain of how to respond to the gesture, but before he could think of something Aqua pulled away.

His face tried to follow hers but stopped when he felt the cold breeze of the mountains instead of Aqua's warm breathing. She chuckled amused at the completely awestruck look on his face and her smile widened as Ven instinctively reached for his lips to relish the feeling of their brief kiss.

In an attempt to regain his composure Ven cleared his throat nervously, failing miserably to hide his obvious state of utter glee and delight. He took a couple of steps forward to be close enough to hold Aqua's hands and intertwined her fingers with his.

"Aqua, would you like to come with me?" He asked shyly, averting his eyes from Aqua's face to the ground multiple times.

"You mean to explore the worlds?" Aqua asked surprised.

Ven nodded with a timid smile.

"I don't know if you already had plans but… I want you to come with me."

Aqua briefly pondered over the offer. She really hadn't thought of what to do now that Terra would become the guardian for the Land of Departure. She didn't see herself taking any pupils under her wing, and she really didn't feel like searching another world to become the guardian of either.

However, the perfect opportunity had just presented itself before her. Now that Ven had reciprocated her feelings she had the chance to join him in his many travels and share all kinds of experiences with him.

Just the two of them.

Her chest fluttered with excitement.

Gently leaning forward Aqua placed her forehead against Ven's and a tender smile spread across her lips.

"I'd love to."


End file.
